The Saga of Mary Queen of Scots, Part III
© Ellen McDaniel-Weissler
Her people welcomed her warily, wondering what this young, Frenchified, Catholic girl would expect of them, wondering whether she would insist on bringing the Papacy back into their lives, wondering how she could possibly understand them any better than her French mother, Marie de Guise, had done during her regency. Marie de Guise had not conciliated the Protestant Kirk - in fact, she had initiated armed struggle against it - but she had earned the respect of its leaders by her exercise of strength and perseverence, something the Scottish people were always willing to admire. As her daughter Mary struggled to remember her Scots language so that she could communicate with her subjects in their own voice, she let it be known that, at least initially, her religious policy would be one of tolerance for the Kirk, but that she would continue in her own Catholic faith.
She exercised her charm to win the support of her councilors and advisors, particularly her half brother James, the Earl of Moray. Since her mother's death, Mary had allowed the Protestant Council to rule Scotland while she remained in France. The armed conflict which had raged on Marie de Guise's behalf between Scotland, France and England came to an end on 6 July, 1560 when the Treaty of Edinburgh was concluded. The Scottish Protestants were able to secure the departure from Scotland of the French and the English, and the English were pleased to see the end of French dominance in Scotland, which would open the path for Scottish Protestantism - most acceptable to predominantly Protestant England. Mary refused to ratify the treaty on the grounds that the French agreed to England's demand that Mary not use the arms of England on her heraldry. Mary had considered herself Queen of England ever since the death of Catholic Queen Mary Tudor, and the accession of the Protestant (and declaared bastard) Queen Elizabeth.
